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Monday, October 25, 2010

Seems like you got a little more than you asked for

I sometimes wonder if Lady Gaga just bit all the great things about pop stars like Michael Jackson and Britney Spears, sexed it up, magnified it, perfected it, and then realized... oh...I could have just stolen all of this from Peaches!

The Canadian-born Peaches has always been completely out there and on the edge of performance art. She has pushed past comfort levels on sex, gender, and fashion. She's been doing that for over 10 years. That means all the women pop and rock stars who have a bit of extravagance in their albums and on stage did it in the wake of the very talented Peaches.

Some of the Peaches first shows included strap on dildos and stage blood. She's recently performed with what she calls a "pussy-light"

You might think Peaches is just shock and awe. I had thought that before, until I learned that she plays all her own instruments, programs all her own beats, and produces her own albums.

She was signed to Sony but was dropped after her big budget video was released. It revolved around Peaches sitting in a locker room while her armpit and pubic hair grew to Rapunzel-esqe lengths. Peaches has opened for Queens of the Stone Age, Nine Inch Nails, and Marilyn Manson.

If that isn't enough to get the message across to you about her eccentric individualism, I'll tell you a story about the one-woman show interpretation of the Andrew Lloyd Webber/Sir Tim Rice musical "Jesus Christ Superstar" that she decided to take on earlier this year. At first, the people who owned the rights to the musical said nope... but she was persistent and finally got the opportunity to put on the show on March 25-27 an Berlin's HAU1. You might be thinking it was a disgusting disaster. Right?

“Not only did Peaches set it off, she managed to surprise us all by showing off an expansive vocal range, a musician’s natural sensitivity to the dynamics of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s score, and an emotive prowess that is rarely if ever displayed in her own, less holy, music.”

I've only seen parts of this musical, and it doesn't seem totally outside what she would be interested in. Still, I had to learn why she wanted to do this. It's a lot of work and probably was exhausting to make it happen and then to perform it alone all night. Doing a bit of research I found this quote from The Peach herself:

"When I was 16, I often sang the whole musical to myself all alone in my room. It tells an entire story without spoken text, only with vocals, in the style of a rock opera. I'm a performer, my concerts are extravagant and play with exaggerations. This project allows me to do without all this. I wanted to confront this task totally exposed, because it is a possibility. It's a question of stamina. Performing 'Peaches Christ Superstar' is the most intense and powerful stage experience I have ever had."

Those of you who are intrigued but dissapointed you missed those dates in Berlin, never fear. She's coming Stateside and it's probably a once in a lifetime kind of event.